On January 21, the non-profit organization Health-ISAC released the 2026 Global Health Sector Threat Landscape report, which predicts that AI (artificial intelligence)-enabled attacks will be a top concern for 2026.
According to the report, ransomware remains the primary threat to the health sector, with prolific groups like Qilin, INC Ransom, and the rapidly expanding SAFEPAY leading the threat landscape. However, the most alarming trend is the continued shift and acceleration by threat actors toward exploiting supply chains. Major security incidents throughout 2025 repeatedly showed that a provider’s security is only as strong as its weakest vendor link, resulting in widespread breaches that affected millions of patient records and prompting a major industry-wide reassessment of third-party risk management.
Attack methodologies also evolved, requiring more advanced defenses, Health-ISAC concluded. “The proliferation of sophisticated social engineering techniques used in malware, such as ClickFix and FileFix, along with the emergence of QR code phishing (quishing), showcased an increasing reliance on methods that bypass traditional perimeter defenses by exploiting human trust.”
Health-ISAC noted that the security risks posed by legacy medical devices, especially those nearing end-of-life, require immediate compensating controls to safeguard patient safety.
For the report, Health-ISAC surveyed health security professionals to rank the five biggest cybersecurity concerns their organizations face as they look toward 2026, which were:
1. AI-Enabled Attacks
2. Ransomware Deployments
3. Third Party Breaches
4. Zero-Day Exploits
5. Phishing/Spear Phishing
The top three impacts on healthcare delivery organizations were reported as:
1. Disruption in the normal operation of medical technology
2. Unauthorized access, theft, or exposure of patients’ personal health information (PHI)
3. Disruption of overall hospital operations, including administrative processes, scheduling, and communication
Threats to the health sector in 2026 are expected to include supply chain issues, financial stress, and governance risks related to AI and emerging technologies, among others. The rapid adoption of AI and digital health solutions will continue to introduce new risks. Concerns in 2026 are likely to grow around algorithmic bias, possible misdiagnoses, and the dependability of AI-powered equipment, according to the report. Without proper governance and validation of AI, there are potential patient safety and liability concerns.
